Victor's adventure begins at a train station. He wants to meet his wife Anna, fireworks light up the night and people are celebrating because the war has just ended. You don't know exactly what time or city you are in, but skyscrapers and English designations suggest a present-day US metropolis. You explore the station in shoulder view, in which some things look static, but still quite solid along with the people, graffito, and display boards.
However, the horror begins as soon as you have to listen to the first dialogue between a passerby and a veteran. This is not only due to facial expressions and gestures, but also the content - the entire situation just seems clumsy. Just like the sudden transition from balloons and party mood to catastrophe: Victor hardly gets on the train when there is an attack, people dissolve burning into nothing - almost like matches.
Between alarm and fire, Victor searches for Anna, who he finds without a stain on his clean suit, despite smoke and sprints. After this poor opening, we are informed that the government has fallen, the cities have been abandoned, and the end times have begun. Three years later, everyone is struggling to survive in a new world. The camera pans to a seemingly extinct city, which at least looks like a roughly textured design study for The Last of Us.
Even though some copy & paste is visible in the terrain and especially vegetation and explosions leave a lot to be desired, a lot of effort has been made to design even small details, especially since some animations in close combat are worth seeing. But even if the view of car wrecks and house facades briefly stirs up the hope that things are about to get charming or even dramatic, Victor immediately ensures distance instead of identification with his stupid grin.
You can assign shortcut keys or change weapons via a fade-in circular menu. A bit more confusing is the optional display of the next target, which also represents potential enemies. In general, the writing is annoying when you pick up ammunition & co. Although the story, which runs over eight episodes, is supposed to be about tough survival, you find ammunition quite often and can progress well on the normal of the three difficulty levels. You also regenerate energy over time, which you can also use for healing. When things get tricky, it's usually because the otherwise dumb AI recognizes you even when you're in cover or when you're outnumbered. Unfortunately, there is little to experiment with on a tactical level, as these enemies are not suitable for creative cat-and-mouse play.
Conclusion
Potentia takes its cues from great end-time adventures like The Last of Us, can achieve a solid level on a graphical level, but fails on the direction and serves up barely adequate gameplay mechanics. You shoot and sneak emotionlessly through a game that can neither generate creative impulses nor situational tension or real survival flair for almost three hours. A lot of things here seem wooden, artificial, and narratively weak. Don't misunderstand: This isn't junk, but as an experience in the context of current games with a similar approach, it's just about adequate.
